ESPN: Idaho State assistant football coach DaVonte' Neal arrested, charged with first-degree murder

[BleedGopher]

per ESPN:

Idaho State assistant football coach DaVonte' Neal was arrested by police in Pocatello, Idaho, at the request of the Maricopa County (Arizona) Sheriff's Office on a warrant that includes charges of first-degree murder, drive-by shooting and discharge of a firearm at a structure, according to Pocatello Police.

The arrest by Pocatello police occurred outside Neal's apartment on May 25. He remains in Bannock County jail pending extradition to Arizona, records show. The alleged shooting of Bryan T. Burns took place in 2017, according to police.

The Maricopa County Sheriff's Office investigated the shooting, but spokesperson Kahri Harrion said the agency was unable to release information on the case. It happened in a busy commercial area along Interstate 10 about 8 miles south of Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport.

Neal, who played college football for Arizona and Notre Dame, had not previously coached college football before being hired in January by new Bengals coach Charlie Ragle. Ragle first coached Neal at Chaparral High in Arizona, where Neal was a two-time Gatorade State Player of the Year (2010, 2011). Ragle also coached Neal at Arizona, where Ragle was an assistant coach from 2012 to 2016.

In a text message to the Idaho State Journal, which first reported the arrest, Idaho State athletic director Pauline Thiros said, "I have been in constant contact with [Ragle] who has known DaVonte' for many years and never had any knowledge or suspicion of a possible crime of any kind. The news of DaVonte' Neal's arrest and charges in Arizona was a great shock. Going forward, we will cooperate in every way possible, safeguard our program and culture, support each other and our students, and allow the legal process to work. The news is devastating and we hope for resolution for all involved."

Idaho State put Neal on administrative leave and has begun the termination process, the State Journal reported.

No further details about the incident were available from Pocatello police.

Idaho State assistant Neal charged with murder

Idaho State assistant football coach DaVonte' Neal was arrested by police in Pocatello, Idaho, on a warrant that includes charges of first-degree murder, drive-by shooting and discharge of a firearm at a structure, according to Pocatello Police.

www.espn.com

Go Gophers!!

 

[GophersInIowa]

Probably doesn't help with the recruiting

 

[Full Speed Ahead]

Probably doesn't help with the recruiting

If you're coaching at the University of Miami it'd help give you street cred with the 'cruits.

 

[highwayman]

“Idaho State put Neal on administrative leave and has begun the termination process…”

Gotta love a college’s version of due process.

 

[Gophers_4life]

Interesting read, written back in 2017: https://www.vice.com/en/article/wnm...-signing-day-fiasco-and-the-problem-with-nlis

Punchline is that this kid was an absolute freak, but he really wanted to stay home at Arizona while his dad essentially forced him to sign with Notre Dame.

Wild, wild guess is that he was absolutely dumbstruck in love with his highschool sweetheart. Why else would you pick Arizona over helmet programs??

Ended up transferring back to AZ from Notre Dame.


Wild, wild, wild, wild guess, if it indeed turns out to be true that he murdered this guy in Arizona back in 2017 (charges only now??): if that guy was messing around with that same highschool sweetheart that he transferred back for (and had a kid with), he snapped. But I made that up. No idea

 

[Gophers_4life]

Also, in case it isn't painfully obvious: you don't bring charges in 2022 for murder on a case from back in 2017, unless you have some really strong evidence.

 

[50PoundHead]

There is the run-and-shoot offense, but I had never heard of the shoot-and-run defense.

 

[USAF]

Interesting read, written back in 2017: https://www.vice.com/en/article/wnm...-signing-day-fiasco-and-the-problem-with-nlis

Punchline is that this kid was an absolute freak, but he really wanted to stay home at Arizona while his dad essentially forced him to sign with Notre Dame.

Wild, wild guess is that he was absolutely dumbstruck in love with his highschool sweetheart. Why else would you pick Arizona over helmet programs??

He's from Scottsdale, finished HS at Scottsdale Chaparral. That's the Phoenix valley.

The University of Arizona is in Tucson. 100 miles and a ton of hatred away. That's no more "staying home" than a hockey player from Edina playing for UMD.

"Staying home" for Neal would have been Arizona State.

 

[Gophers_4life]

The University of Arizona is in Tucson.

If you read the article, and got the gist of my post, you would know that his highschool sweetheart went to AZ. As do a ton of kids from PHX area every year, as it is the state's flagship research/educational school and also a huge party school.

AZ State is actually not a land-grant school. It only called itself "State" in the same way that Mankato does. Not because it was a legit land-grant school (like Michigan State, for example).

It's basically something of a massively overgrown Boise St/UNLV type of institution.

 

[A_Slab_of_Bacon]

I’m honestly more impressed with that text message response than anything else.

 

[paulser21]

Also, in case it isn't painfully obvious: you don't bring charges in 2022 for murder on a case from back in 2017, unless you have some really strong evidence.

DNA hit results are the only thing I can think of.